Door-actuating mechanism



March 4 v I I F. s. BALATTA 1000K ACTUATING MECHANISM Filed March 1. 1922 March 4, 1924; 1,485,476

F.$.BALATTA DOOR ACTUATING MECHANISM Filed March l. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Mar. 4, 1924.

I sat DOOR-ACTUATING MECHANISM.

Application filed March 1, 1922. Serial No. 540,174.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, FRANK S. BALATTA, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Paul, in the county of Ramsey and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Door-Actuating Mechanism; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to automatic mecha nism for operating doors of garages and the like, and has for its object to simplify and 1 generally improve such mechanism.

Generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

The improved door actuating mechanism may be applied to either hinged or sliding doors, but, in the drawings, is illustrated as applied to, a multi-section folding door such as quite generally used in garages and other buildings into which and from which automobiles or trucks must frequently pass.

In the accompanying drawings like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevation looking at the inner face of a garage door of the multi-section folding type and illustrating my improved actuating mechanism applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken approximately on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation with some parts sectioned, showing parts found in the vicinity of the line marked 33 on Fig. 4;

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic plan view with some parts in full section and particularly illustrating the relative positions of the several depressible wheel-engaged actuators;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective in section on the line 55 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a perspective of certain parts illustrated in Fig. 3; and r Fig. 7 is a fragmentary perspective show- 50 ing an approved means for connecting the cables to one of the door actuating levers,

The door illustrated is made up of four sections connected to foldas two doors, the door-forming sections 8 being connected by hinges 9 and the doors being mounted to swing on outside hinges 10 to open and close a doorway formed in a wall 11. V

The inner door sections are provided with the customary upper and lower springpressed lock bolts 12, the upper and lower locks of each door being connected by rods 12? to the opposite ends of a short motionreversing lever 13 'intermediatelypivoted to the respective door sections. The levers 13 are connected to the lower ends of trip rods 14, the upper endsof which are guided through eyes 15 or the like on the upper portions of the door sections and are formed with outturned ends 14*, which, when the doors are closed, overlie the bale-like portion of a crank-acting trip shaft 16, (see Figs. 1 and 2), thatis journaled in suitable bearings 17 on a bracket 18, which latter is rigidly secured or fixed to the wall 11 just above the door opening. The means for operating this lock-tripping crank shaft 16 will presently be described.

For forcing thedoors to and from closed positions, I provide bent levers 19 located on the inner side of the door, pivoted to the adjacent door sections at one end and at their other ends provided with cable-engaging clamps 20. Links 21 are pivoted to the levers 19 not far. from their clamps 20 and the said links are pivotally anchored to the wall or door frame structure, as clearly shown in Fig.2. r a

By means of the clamps20, the short ends of the door-actuatinglevers 19 are connected to door-operating cables 22, which, in one direction, extend over guide sheaves 23 on the bracket 18 and are connected to a common cable 24, In the other direction, one of said cables is. extended over a guide sheave 25 and the other of said cables is extended 95 over guide sheaves 26 and 27 suitably journale'd on the walls of the building, and both of which cables, at these ends,are, as shown, attached to a weight 28 which, in turn, is connected to one end of a coiled 1 spring 29 that is anchored to the wall. With hi arrangement h spring nd, eigh just noted will automatically close the doors when the latter are released and free to be closed.

The common cable 24 is attached to a lever 30 pivotedto a suitable support 31 located at one side of the driveway or line of travel of the vehicle within the building toward and from the doorway. This cable 24 is also passed over a guide sheave 32 suitably supported from the ceiling of the building above the lever 30.

The lever 30 is connected by a trip rod 33 to the arm 34 of a rock shaft 35, which latter is mounted in suitable bearings 36 on the floor and is provided with a depressible plate 37 over which the wheel of an automobile or truck is adapted to be driven.

Located in line with the depressible plate 37 is another depressible plate 38 that is located slightly forward from the doorway and is secured to a rock shaft 39 journaled in bearings 40 on the floor and provided at one end with a crank arm 41 that is attached to the lower end of a cable 42. This cable 42 is passed over suitable guides including a guide sheave 43 on the ceiling and is attached to an arm 16 of the lock-tripping crank 16.

Located in the line of travel of the wheels at one side of the driveway is a third depressible plate or member 44, shown as pivoted to the floor at 45 and spring-held upward against a stop 46 by a coiled spring 47. The free end of this tripping member or lever 44 is connected by a rod 48 or the like to the lower end of a hook bar 49 that is mounted to slide and otherwise move in a sort of a channel box 50 secured to the wall adjacent to one side of the door opening. At its upper end, the bar 49 has a projecting hook flange 51 that is engageable with ratchet-like lugs 52 and 53 of a second bar 54 that is also mounted to slide in the channel box 50. This bar 54 is connected to one end of a cable 55 that extends over suitable guides 56 on the ceiling and the other end of which is brought down and attached to the upper end of a spring-retracting lever-tripping bar 57. This bar 57 slides vertically in a bracket 58 that is secured to the support 31 and is provided with lever-engaging latch lugs 59. Said bar 57 has a latch shoulder 60 and a cam surface 61 that perform important functions to be hereinafter noted. The numeral 62 indicates a leaf spring secured to the support 31 and operating on the lever 30 also as hereinafter described. The upper end of the bar 49 is provided with a transversely projecting clip 63 that is engageable with cam surfaces 63 on the sides of the channel box 50, for a purpose which will also presently appear. The channel box 50 is provided with a transverse guide bar 50 that holds the bar 49 in working position and tends to cause the flanged end 51 thereof to engage the v said bar from the engaged tooth 52 or 53,

as the case may be, of the bar 54.

Operation.

In driving an automobile or truck out of the garage or building, the first wheel to engage the plate or lever 38, operating through the cable 42, will rock the tripping crank 16, thereby causing the bale-like portion of the latter to lift the rods 14 and thereby, through the levers 13 and rods 12, moving the lock bolts 12 into releasing positions, thus unlocking the doors.

The vehicle, moving slightly further toward the door, causes the wheel noted next to run onto and depress the plate or lever 37 thereby causing the weight of the automobile or truck, operating through said plate 37, cables 22 and levers 19, to swing the doors into open positions, as indicated in part by dotted lines in Fig. 2, by reference to which it will be seen that the hinged sections of said doors are swung against the outer wall surface of the building, leaving the doorway completely open. The remote sections of the doors 8, not shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2, are folded onto the hinged sections thereof until stopped by the levers 19. Of course, by adjustment of the cable 24, the doors can be set to open to any desired extent.

When the doors are swung open, the laterally bent upper ends 14 of the trip rods 14 are moved away from the tripping crank 16, but when the doors are closed, said ends again assume position over the bale-like portion of said tripping crank 16. Here it may be noted that the bale-like portion of said tripping crank 16 is yieldingly pressed downwardly by a small leaf spring 18, so that it will come under the said ends 14 as the doors are closed.

When the plate or lever 37 was depressed by the wheel as above described, the lever 30 was drawn down into engagement with the spring 62 and by the latter was locked to the lugs 59 of the latch bracket 58 (see Fig. 6). Moreover, this temporary locking of the lever 30 in its depressed position temporarily locks the doors in their open positions so that they cannot close or be closed while the vehicle is passing through the doors. a

When, however, the first wheel of the vehicle runs over the releasing lever 44 and depresses the same, the bar 49 will be drawn downward while engaged with the lug 52 of the bar 54 and this movement oi the lit) bar 54, through thecable55, raisesthe bar 57 far enough to engage/its shoulder 60 with the lever 30, therebytemporarily looking said bar 57 in its partly raised position. When the first wheel runsofi' from the lever 44, the bar 49 will be moved back to the position shown in Fig. 5, while the bar 54 remains in its partly depressed position with its lug 53 standinginvthe place where the lug 52 is shown as positioned in Fig. 5; and hence, at this time, the hook flange 51 of the bar 49 will engage with the lug 53. When the second wheel of the vehicle runs onto and depresses the lever 44, the bar 54 will be given its second step of downward movement and this acting through the cable 55 gives the releasing bar 57 its second step of upward movement, thereby causing its cam 61 to engage the lever 30 and positively release the same from the lugs 59 and spring 62, and thereupon, said lever 30 being released, the doors are free for closing movement under action of the weight 28 and spring 29.

The spring 29 acts to start the closing movement of the doors, but as the weight 28 lowers, said spring goes out of action, so that the completion of said door-closing movement is produced by the weight 28 alone and, in this way, a slow but sure closing movement of the doors is produced.

The mechanism described is arranged to produce opening movements of the doors only by movement of the vehicle within the garage or building toward the doors, but a similar arrangement might be provided at the exterior of the building if desired. Of course, the doors can be opened at any time by manually operating .the lever 30.

When a vehicle is to enter the garage, the doors will be opened by manipulation of the lever 30 at the inside of the building. However, the doors having been opened and the vehicle driven over the lever 44, the automatic closing of the doors will be accomplished as already described.

In connection with the door actuating mechanism described, I preferably provide an electric signal which will throw into action an electric bell or gong when the mechanism is given its initial door-opening movement. As shown, this alarm device comprises a contact 64 secured on the cable 22, an electric circuit 65 including a bell 66, and

a fixed contact 67 with which the contact 64' is adapted to be engaged by the initial dooropening movement of the cable 22.

It has already been pointed out that the doors may be operated either by an automobile or truck or by manual manipulation of the lever 30. Attention is also called to the fact that the locks of the two doors, by hand operations, can be independently released and the doors independently or simultaneously moved.

' The mechanism is herein described as a door actuating mechanism, but, it Wlll, 01'. course, be understood that the same may be use for operating gates if the same should .movement, of a vehicle, an'intermediate le-I ver,means for locking said intermediate lever in a position to hold the door open, the depression of said first noted lever serving to open the door, and means for tripping said intermediate lever to permit closing of the door, comprising a depressible member located close to the door in position to be engaged by a wheel of the vehicle.

2. The combination with a movable door, of a vehicle actuated device having connections for opening said door, said connections including a cable and an intermediate lever, a latch operative on said lever to hold the door in an open position, and a vehicleactuated device for trippingsaid latch to permit the door to close.

3. The combination with a movable door having a lock for holding the same closed, of three vehicle-actuated devices located progressively nearer and nearer to the door, the first of said devices having connections for releasing the door lock, the second of said devices having connections for opening the door and including an intermediate lever, a latch operative on said intermediate lever to hold the door closed, and the third of said vehicle-actuated devices having latch-actuating connections for releasing said intermediate lever and permitting the door to close.

4. The combination with a movable door and yielding means tending to close the same, of a door-actuating cable connected it; the door and operative to open the same, an intermediate latch lever connected to said cable, a relatively fixed latch element with which said lever is engageable to hold the door open, a vehicle-actuated element connected to said lever and operative through said lever to open the door, a sliding tripping bar operative on said lever to release the same from said fixed latch element, a second sliding bar connected to said latch-releasing bar, a third bar having inter-- locking engagement with said second sliding bar, and a wheel-engaged element connected to said third bar and operating through said three sliding bars to trip said latch lever and permit the door to close.

5. The combination with a movable door and yielding means tending to close the same, of a door-actuating cable connected to the door and operative to open the same, an intermediate latch lever connected to said cable, a relatively fixed latch element with movabl eV which said lever is engageable to hold the door open, a vehicle-actuated element connected to said lever and operative through said lever to open the door, a sliding trip pin bar having a shoulder engageable with sai latch lever and having a cam surface also operative on the latter, a second sliding bar connected to said sliding latch bar and having upper and lower lugs, a third sliding bar having a shoulder engageable progressively with the lugs of said second sliding bar, and a yielding vehicle-engaged element having a connection to said third sliding bar, the engagement of the 111 of said latch bar with said latch lever causing the lug of said third bar to engage the upper lug of said second bar by a second operation or depression.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature.

FRANK S. BALATTA. 

